Well apparatus



March 5, 1935., K, KELLEY ET AL 1,993,515

WELL APPARATUS Filed Jan. 26, 1953 L H EH4 INVENTORS. W@}% Y. ATTORNEY.

Patented Mar. 5, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Perkins, S

ulphur, La.

Application January26, 1933, Serial No. 653,600

3 Claims.

This invention relates generally to apparatuses for the recovery of ifiatter from wells, and has for its general object the provision of certain new and useful improvements on the apparatus covered by our Letters Patent of the United States, Number 1,886,886, granted on November 8, 1932.

Conventional well apparatus includes a casing to the lower end of which is attached a screen. The oil or other fluid enters the screen and passes upwardly through the casing or through a tubing within the casing. The screen is frequently clogged up by surrounding formation, and cleaning the screen with the apparatuses heretofore available has been a most diflicult task.

The principal specific object of this invention is to provide a new and improved apparatus of the character covered by our said Letters Patent to efliciently clean conventional well screens, the parts being so constructed and arranged that the apparatus may be inserted downwardly through a conventional casing and into a conventional screen, and removed therefrom as desired, while the casing and screen remain in the well.

Other objects will hereinafter appear.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawing wherein Fig. 1 is a fragmentary elevation of the apparatus in a conventional casing and screen; Figs. 2 and 3, horizontal sections on the lines 2-'-2 and 3-3 of Fig. 1, respectively; Fig. 4, an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the connection between the fluid entrance pipe and the fluid exit pipe; Fig. 5', a sideelevation at a right angle to Fig. 4; and Fig. 6, a reduced, somewhat diagrammatical view of @e upper end of the casing with the apparatus therein In Fig. 1 of the drawing, the casing is indicated at 1 and the screen attached thereto at 2. The

40 lower end of the screen 2 rests upon the bottom of the well, whereby it is closed. Extending downwardly in the casing l and sealed thereto by suitable packing means 3 is a tubing 4 (Fi 6), forming an extension of the fluid exit pipe hereinafter referred to. The casing 1 forms an extension of the fluid entrance pipe hereinafterreferred to, and a pump P is connected to the casing 1 as indicated at 5 to pump fluid downwardly through the casing 1 to the fluid entrance pipe. A plunger 6 is disposed within the tubing 4 to be reciprocated by the rod '7 to draw fluid upwardly through the fluid exit pipe and tubing 4. The rod 7 is sealed to tubing 4 by a suitable packing 8, and a valve 9 is provided to control the flow of the fluid out of the tubing 4.

(Cl. ice-2o) The lower end of the tubing 4 (Fig. 1) is connected by a suitable coupling 5 to the fluid exit pipe 10. The pipe 10 comprises inner and outer telescopic sections 10a and 10b, held against rotary movement with'respect to each other by the pin 11 on the inner section 10a slidable in the slot 12 in the outer section 101), The inner section 10a hastherein openings 13 communicating with slots 14 in the outer section 10b. Near the upper end of the inner section 10a is a metal ring 10 15 welded thereon, and between this ring 15 and the outer section 10b is an expansible rubber packing 16 to seal the space between the fluid exit pipe 10 and the casing 1 above the screen 2. Between two relatively movable parts of the outer 15 section 10b is an expansible rubberpacking 1'7 to seal the space between the fluid exit pipe 10 and a part of the screen 2 intermediate the ends of said screen. It will be noted that the packing means 16 is above and the packing means 17 is go below the openings 13 and 14 in the sections of exit pipe 10.

It will be seen that the outer section 10b, just referred to, comprises two parts; that part below the packing 1'1, and that part between the pack- 5 ings 17 and 16, the latter of which is slidable longitudinally on the inner section 10a. And so when the inner section 10a is moved downwardly while the lower part of section 10b is held stationary by the bottom of the well, the inner section 10a moves the collar 15 downwardly, which in turn moves the packing 16 downwardly and the packing 16 moves the upper part of the outer section 10b downwardly to effect the expansion of the two packings 16 and 1'7.

Within the fluid exit pipe 10, but not in communication therewith, is a fluid entrance pipe 18 communicating at its upper end with the casing 1 above packing 16, and sealed at its lower end to the inner section 10a by the ring 19 welded to said pipe 18 and said inner section 10a (Fig. 4) Said screw 20 holds a plug 21 in the ring 19 and section 10a, and said plug 21 extends outwardly into an elongated slot 22 in outer section 10b, to

. prevent rotary movement of the inner and outer sections 10a. and 10b with respect to each other, and to permit only a limited telescopic movement thereof.

The lower end of the fluid entrance pipe 18 is arranged to discharge fluid through the openings a 23 on the lower end of the apparatus.

When it is desired to clean a clogged screen of the conventional type, our apparatus may be lowered into place in the well as indicated by the drawing. When the lower end of the apparatus strikes the bottom of the well, and the tubing 4 is lowered further, the weight of the tubing will cause the inner section 10a to move downwardly in the outer section 10b whereby the packings 16 and 17 will be expanded into sealing engagement with the casing l and screen 2, respectively. Plug 21 serves to prevent excessive downward movement of the section 10a in the section 10b.

Then, if the operator so desires, he may first connect the pump P by any suitable conventional means (not shown) to the tubing 4, and pump fluid downwardly through openings 13 and 14, into the space between packers 16 and 17, and finally outwardly through that partof the screen 2 above the packing 17 to clean said openings 13 and 14 and said part of screen 2. Then, with the pump P connected as shown in Fig. 6, the operator may pump fluid downwardly through the casing 1, through fluid entrance pipe 18, through openings 23, and finally through that part of screen 2 below packing l7; and, if he so desires, he may simultaneously reciprocate plunger 6 to pump the fluid out of the well through the tubing 4.

Various advantages and uses of this apparatus, in addition to the foregoing, will be apparent to those skilled in the art, particularly in view of our said Letters Patent of the United States, Number 1,886,886.

The invention is not limited to the preferred embodiment herein disclosed. Various changes may be made within the scope of -the following claims.

We claim:

1. The combination with a well casing and a screen attached thereto, of an apparatus of the character described insertible in and removable from said casing and screen while the latter are in the well, said apparatus including a tubing; a

.fluid exit pipe depending from said tubing and in communication therewith, said exit pipe having telescopic sections, said sections having openings therein; upper and lower packing means above and below said openings, that packing means above said openings being expansible by movement of said sections toward each other to seal the space between said exit pipe and said casing above said screen, and that packing means below said openings being expansible by movement of said sections toward each other to seal the space between said exit pipe and a part of said screen intermediate the upper and lower ends of said screen; a fluid entrance pipe within said exit pipe and in communication with said casing above said upper packing means, but not in communication with said tubing or said exit pipe, and having a discharge opening within said screen below said lower packing means; means to force fluid downwardly through the casing and said entrance pipe; and means to draw fluid upwardly through said exit pipe and tubing.

2. The combination with a well casing and a screen attached thereto, of an apparatus of the character described insertible in and removable from said casing and screen while the latter are in the well, said apparatus including a tubing; a fluid exit pipe depending from said tubing and in communication therewith, said exit pipe having telescopic sections, said sections having openings therein; upper and lower packing means above and below said openings, that packing means above said openings being expansible by relative movement of said sections to seal the space between said exit pipe and said casing above said screen, and that packing means below said openings being expansible by relative movement of said sections to seal the space between said exit pipe and a part of said screen intermediate the upper and lower ends of said screen; and a fluid entrance pipe within said exit pipe and in communication with said casing above said upper packing means, but not in communication with said tubing or said exit pipe, and having a discharge opening within said screen below said lower packing means.

3. The combination with a well casing and a screen attached thereto, of an apparatus of the character described insertible in and removable from said casing and screen while the latter are in the well, said apparatus including a tubing; 9. fluid exit pipe depending from said tubing and in communication therewith, said exit pipe having telescopic sections, said sections having openings therein; upper and lower packing means above and below said openings, that packing means above said openings being expansible by relative movement of said sections to seal the space between said exit pipe and said casing above said screen, and that packing means below said openings being expansible by relative movement of said sections to seal the space between said exit pipe and a part 01 said screen intermediate the upper and lower ends of said screen; and a fluid entrance pipe in communication with said casing above said upper packing means but not in communication with said tubing or said exit pipe, and having a discharge opening within said screen below said lower packing means.

' KIRKLAND KELLEY. SAMUEL J. PERKINS. 

